CN115715388A

CN115715388A - Method, system and device for designing experiment protocol

Info

Publication number: CN115715388A
Application number: CN202180045972.0A
Authority: CN
Inventors: 伴野太一
Original assignee: Shimadzu Corp
Current assignee: Shimadzu Corp
Priority date: 2020-06-30
Filing date: 2021-03-09
Publication date: 2023-02-24
Also published as: US20230251832A1; JP7494910B2; JPWO2022004061A1; JP2024096155A; WO2022004061A1

Abstract

The invention provides a design method of an experimental protocol capable of coping with higher-level processing. A system according to one embodiment includes at least one experimental apparatus (121-126), a control apparatus, and a terminal apparatus. The control device controls at least one of the experiment devices (121-126) to execute an experiment protocol (p 1) that defines a processing procedure of the at least one experiment device (121-126). The terminal device designs an experimental protocol (p 1) in the form of a directed graph (DG 1) by a GU I operation of a user on a specific application (500). The terminal device includes, as vertices of the digraph (DG 1), a plurality of selectable nodes including a processing node (M1) corresponding to each process of at least one experimental device (121-126) and a conditional branch node (T2) corresponding to the conditional branch process.

Description

Method, system and device for designing experiment protocol

Technical Field

The invention relates to a method, a system and a device for designing an experimental protocol.

Background

Conventionally, a configuration is known in which an experiment is performed according to an experiment protocol designed by a user on a computer. For example, in a system disclosed in international publication No. 2016/208623 (patent document 1), a graph in which a chain of experiments is formed in a mesh shape is obtained from a database containing information on an experiment protocol and displayed.

Documents of the prior art

Patent literature

Patent document 1: international publication No. 2016/208623

Disclosure of Invention

Technical problem to be solved by the invention

In the system disclosed in patent document 1, based on a hierarchical structure of experiment protocols defined by an inheritance relationship between a certain experiment protocol and another experiment protocol to which a part of the experiment protocol is modified, it is possible to grasp an association between a plurality of experiments associated with each of the plurality of experiment protocols. However, the system disclosed in patent document 1 does not consider a flow including a plurality of processes in one protocol, and cannot cope with a higher-level process.

The present invention has been made to solve the above-described problems, and an object of the present invention is to accurately perform automatic analysis of an experimental protocol.

Solution for solving the above technical problem

The method of one aspect of the present invention comprises: the method comprises the steps of receiving a GU I (Graph I ca User I interface) operation of a specific application program by a User, designing an experiment protocol which specifies the processing sequence of at least one experiment device in a directed Graph mode according to the received GU I operation, and controlling the at least one experiment device to automatically execute the experiment protocol. The selectable plurality of nodes as vertices of the directed graph include processing nodes corresponding to respective processes of at least one experimental apparatus and conditional branch nodes corresponding to conditional branch processes.

The system according to another aspect of the present invention includes at least one experimental apparatus, a terminal apparatus, and a control apparatus. The terminal device has an input unit and a processing unit. The input unit receives a GU I operation of a user for a specific application. The processing unit designs an experiment protocol defining a processing sequence of at least one experiment device in the form of a directed graph based on the received GU I operation. The control device controls at least one experimental device to execute an experimental protocol. The terminal device includes, as vertices of the digraph, a plurality of selectable nodes including a processing node corresponding to each process of at least one experimental device and a conditional branch node corresponding to a conditional branch process.

The apparatus according to another aspect of the present invention controls at least one experimental apparatus to execute an experimental protocol that specifies a processing sequence of the at least one experimental apparatus. The device includes a display unit, an input unit, and a processing unit. The display unit displays a specific application program. The input unit receives a GU I operation of a user for a specific application. The processing part designs an experimental protocol in a directed graph mode according to GU I operation. The selectable plurality of nodes as vertices of the directed graph include processing nodes corresponding to respective processes of at least one experimental apparatus and conditional branch nodes corresponding to conditional branch processes.

Effects of the invention

According to the method, system, and apparatus of the present invention, it is possible to design an experimental protocol in the form of a directed graph including conditional branch nodes, and thus it is possible to provide a method of designing an experimental protocol that can cope with higher-level processing.

Drawings

Fig. 1 is a block diagram showing a configuration of an automatic experiment management system according to an embodiment.

Fig. 2 is a block diagram showing a hardware configuration of the terminal apparatus of fig. 1.

Fig. 3 is a diagram illustrating the GU I composition of the experimental protocol design application of fig. 1.

Fig. 4 is a diagram showing a case where a certain process is selected in the automatic experiment system window of fig. 3.

Fig. 5 is a diagram showing a case where a processing node corresponding to the processing selected in fig. 4 is added to the protocol design window.

Fig. 6 is a diagram showing a case where a sample container corresponding to the container node of fig. 5 is designated.

Fig. 7 is a diagram showing a case where designation of a sample container corresponding to the container node of fig. 6 is completed.

Fig. 8 is a diagram showing a case where a feature amount extraction node is added to the protocol design window of fig. 7.

Fig. 9 is a diagram showing a case where output data corresponding to the data node of fig. 8 is selected as data on which the extraction processing of the feature amount corresponding to the feature amount extraction node is performed.

Fig. 10 is a diagram showing a case where a conditional branch node is added to the protocol design window of fig. 9.

Fig. 11 is a diagram showing a case where the conditional branch processing of the conditional branch node of fig. 10 is determined.

Fig. 12 is a diagram showing a directed graph as a design example of another experimental protocol.

Fig. 13 is a diagram showing a directed graph as a design example of another experimental protocol.

Fig. 14 is a diagram showing an example of information displayed when a GU I operation specified by a user is performed on a node included in the directed graph shown in fig. 13.

Fig. 15 is a block diagram showing a hardware configuration of the server device of fig. 1.

Fig. 16 is a flowchart illustrating a flow of an automatic experiment based on an experiment protocol performed in the automatic experiment management system of fig. 1.

Fig. 17 is a block diagram showing the configuration of the automatic experiment management system according to modification 1 of the embodiment.

Fig. 18 is a block diagram showing a hardware configuration of the terminal device of fig. 17.

Fig. 19 is a block diagram showing a configuration of an automatic experiment system according to modification 2 of the embodiment.

Fig. 20 is a block diagram showing a hardware configuration of the control device of fig. 19.

Detailed Description

Hereinafter, embodiments will be described in detail with reference to the drawings. In the following, the same or corresponding portions in the drawings are denoted by the same reference numerals, and the description thereof will not be repeated in principle.

Fig. 1 is a block diagram showing a configuration of an automatic experiment management system 1000 according to an embodiment. As shown in fig. 1, the automatic experiment management system 1000 includes an automatic experiment system 1, a server device 200, a database 300, and a terminal device 400. The database 300 is connected to the server apparatus 200. In the database 300, for example, information related to the automatic experiment system 1, information related to a sample, an experiment protocol, output data (experiment result) output by execution of the experiment protocol, and the like are registered. The terminal device 400 includes an input/output unit 430. The input/output section 430 includes a display 431, a keyboard 432, and a touch panel 433. The terminal device 400 is, for example, a notebook computer, a personal computer, a smartphone, and a tablet computer. The automatic experiment system 1, the server device 200, and the terminal device 400 are connected to each other via a network NW. The Network NW includes, for example, the internet, WAN (WAN Area Network), or LAN (LAN Area Network). The number of terminal devices connected to the network NW may be 2 or more, and the number of automatic experimental systems may be 2 or more.

The server apparatus 200 provides the experimental protocol design application 500 (specific application) to the terminal apparatus 400 as a Web application. The experimental protocol design application 500 is displayed on the display 431 via the Web browser 600 in the terminal apparatus 400. The keyboard 432 and touchpad 433 receive GU I operations by the user on the experimental protocol design application 500. That is, the user of the terminal device 400 selects an automatic experimental system in the experimental protocol design application 500 by the GU I operation via the keyboard 432 and the touch pad 433, and designs an experimental protocol to be executed by the automatic experimental system. In the experimental protocol, a processing order of at least one experimental apparatus included in the automatic experimental system according to a user selection is specified. The terminal apparatus 400 transmits the experimental protocol designed by the user to the server apparatus 200. The server apparatus 200 transmits the experiment protocol to the automatic experiment system specified by the user of the terminal apparatus 400. By interposing the server device 200 between a terminal device for designing an experimental protocol and an automatic experimental system for executing the experimental protocol, it is possible to collectively manage a plurality of terminal devices and a plurality of automatic experimental systems from the server device 200.

The automated experiment system 1 includes a control device 110 and a plurality of experiment devices 120. The control device 110 controls the plurality of experiment devices 120 to automatically execute the experiment protocol from the server device 200. The plurality of experiment apparatuses 120 include a robot arm 121, an incubator 122, a liquid handler 123, a microplate reader 124, a centrifuge 125, and a liquid Chromatograph Mass Spectrometer (LCMS: L i qu i d chromatography Mass Spectrometer) 126. In addition, the number of the experimental apparatuses included in the automatic experimental system may be 1.

The robot arm 121 moves the plate P l t1 or P l t2, which is a container for storing a sample, to the experimental apparatus corresponding to each of the plurality of processes in accordance with the order of the plurality of processes defined by the experimental protocol. The plates P l t1 and P l t2 each accommodate, for example, agar comprising cultured E.coli. The incubator 122 performs temperature management and cultures cells. The liquid handler 123 automatically distributes (dispenses) a predetermined amount of sample to each of the plurality of micro-plates (wells). The microplate reader 124 performs measurements of optical properties (e.g., absorbance measurements and fluorescence intensity measurements) of the sample within the microplate. The centrifuge 125 separates components of the sample according to centrifugal force. The LCMS126 performs mass analysis in which components of a sample separated by a liquid chromatograph are separated in terms of mass-to-charge ratio (m/z).

Fig. 2 is a block diagram showing a hardware configuration of the terminal apparatus 400 of fig. 1. As shown in fig. 2, the terminal apparatus 400 includes a processor 421, a memory 422 and a hard disk 423 as storage units, a communication interface 424, and an input/output unit 430. Which are communicatively connected to each other via a bus 440.

The hard disk 423 is a nonvolatile storage device. The hard disk 423 stores, for example, an Operating System (OS) program 41 and a Web browser program 42. In addition to the data shown in fig. 2, the hard disk 423 stores settings and outputs of various application programs, for example. The Memory 422 is a volatile Memory device, such as a DRAM (dynamic Random Access Memory).

The processor 421 includes a CPU (Central l Process i ng Un it: central processing Unit). The processor 421 reads a program stored in the hard disk 423 into the memory 422 and executes the program. The processor 421 is connected to a network NW via a communication interface 424.

Fig. 3 is a diagram illustrating the GU I composition of the experimental protocol design application 500 of fig. 1. As shown in fig. 3, the experimental protocol design application 500 includes: a queue list window 510, a protocol list window 520, a protocol design window 530, an automated experimentation system window 540, a sample container window 550, a tool window 560, and a selection cursor Cr.

In the queue list window 510, a queue in which a plurality of protocols are ordered is displayed. In fig. 3, queues q1, q2 are displayed in queue list window 510. The experimental protocols are displayed in the protocol list window 520. In fig. 3, the experimental protocol p1 is displayed and selected in the protocol list window 520.

In the protocol design window 530, the experimental protocol is designed in the form of a directed graph. In the directed graph, a connection relationship between a plurality of nodes is defined as an edge. The directed graph is stored as graph structure data according to a predetermined structured data format. Examples of the structured data format include XML (extenss i b l e Markup Language) and Json (JavaScr i pt (registered trademark) Object Notat i on). The selectable nodes that are the vertices of the directed graph are formed as GU I, and include container nodes, processing nodes, and data nodes. A container node is a node corresponding to a container holding a sample. The processing node is a node corresponding to each process of the apparatus included in the automatic experiment system. The data node is a node corresponding to output data processed by the experimental apparatus.

The protocol design window 530 is divided into a container area 531, a processing area 532, and a data area 533. In the processing area 532 in the initial state where the design of a certain experimental protocol is started, a start node Ms indicating the start of the experimental protocol, an end node Me indicating the end of the experimental protocol, and an edge E10 from the start node Ms to the end node Me are displayed.

The automatic experiment system window 540 displays processes that can be respectively performed by at least one experiment device included in the automatic experiment system according to the user's selection. In fig. 3, an automated experimental system 1 is selected. As a process that can be performed by the robot arm 121, "conveyance container" is displayed. As a process that can be performed by the incubator 122, "cultured cells" is displayed. The "dispensed liquid" is displayed as a process executable by the liquid processor 123. As the processing that can be performed by the micro plate reader 124, "absorbance measurement" and "fluorescence intensity measurement" are displayed. As a process that can be executed by the centrifuge 125, "centrifugation" is displayed. As a process that can be performed by the LCMS126, "mass analysis" is displayed.

The container holding the sample is shown in the sample container window 550. FIG. 3 shows a case of E.coli as one example of a case of accommodating a sample in the plates P l t1 and P l t 2.

The specific processing performed by the control device of the automated experimental system is displayed in the tool window 560. In fig. 3, "feature quantity extraction", "conditional branching", "repetition", and "timer" are shown. "feature amount extraction" corresponds to a process of extracting a feature amount specified by a user from data corresponding to a data node selected by the user. The "conditional branching" corresponds to a process of performing branching processing based on the success or failure of a condition specified by the user. "repetition" corresponds to the following processing: the specified processing is repeated corresponding to the number of times specified by the user. The "timer" corresponds to a process of waiting for the progress of the experimental protocol for a time designated by the user.

Fig. 4 is a diagram showing a case where a certain process is selected in the automatic experiment system window 540 of fig. 3. As shown in fig. 4, the "absorbance measurement" is dragged between the start node Ms and the end node Me by the user selecting it in the automated experiment system window 540.

Fig. 5 is a diagram showing a case where a processing node corresponding to the processing selected in fig. 4 is added to the protocol design window 530. As shown in fig. 5, a processing node M1 corresponding to the "absorbance measurement" is added between the start node Ms and the end node Me and selected. With the addition of the processing node M1, the container node C1 and the data node D1 are automatically added to the container area 531 and the data area 533, respectively. As processing node M1 is selected, an information window 570 containing information related to the selected node is displayed. Fig. 5 shows the measurement wavelength and the measurement target well as parameters of the absorbance measurement corresponding to the processing node M1.

The start node Ms and the processing node M1 are connected by an edge E1 from the start node Ms toward the processing node M1. The processing node M1 and the end node Me are connected by an edge E2 extending from the processing node M1 to the end node Me. The container node C1 and the processing node M1 are connected by an edge E3 (1 st edge) from the container node C1 toward the processing node M1. The processing node M1 and the data node D1 are connected by an edge E4 (2 nd edge) from the processing node M1 toward the data node D1. Edge E3 shows that the container corresponding to container node C1 is being entered into the process corresponding to processing node M1. Edge E4 shows that the output data of the process corresponding to processing node M1 corresponds to data node D1. With the addition of a processing node, a container node and a data node connected to the processing node are automatically added, thereby making it possible to efficiently design an experimental protocol. In fig. 5, since the sample container corresponding to the container node C1 is not designated, the container node C1 and the edge E3 are indicated by broken lines.

Fig. 6 is a diagram showing a case where a sample container corresponding to the container node C1 of fig. 5 is specified. As shown in FIG. 6, a "panel P l t1" is selected by the user in the sample container window 550 and dragged to container node C1. As "panel P l t1" is selected in the sample container window 550, the title of the information window 570 becomes "container information".

Fig. 7 is a diagram showing a case where designation of a sample container corresponding to the container node C1 of fig. 6 is completed. As shown in FIG. 7, container node C1 is selected, and container node C1 and edge E3 are shown as solid lines. The information window 570 shows the samples held by the container corresponding to the container node C1 and the container name.

Fig. 8 is a diagram showing a case where the characteristic amount extraction node T1 is added to the protocol design window 530 of fig. 7. "feature quantity extraction" is selected in the tool window 560 and dragged to the protocol design window 530. As a result, the feature extraction node T1 is added to the protocol design window 530. As the feature amount extraction node T1 is selected, the title of the information window 570 becomes "tool information".

Fig. 9 is a diagram showing a case where the output data corresponding to the data node D1 of fig. 8 is selected as data to which the feature amount extraction processing corresponding to the feature amount extraction node T1 is performed. As shown in fig. 9, by a drag operation by the user from the data node D1 toward the feature amount extraction node T1, an edge E5 from the data node D1 toward the feature amount extraction node T1 is added. The edge E5 shows that a certain feature amount is extracted from the output data corresponding to the data node D1 by the feature amount extraction process corresponding to the feature amount extraction node T1. The user can specify the feature quantity extracted from the output data corresponding to the data node D1 in the information window corresponding to the feature quantity extraction node T1. The feature amount may be selected from a predetermined feature amount template.

Fig. 10 is a diagram showing a case where the conditional branch node T2 is added to the protocol design window 530 in fig. 9. As shown in FIG. 10, a "conditional branch" is selected in the tools window 560 and dragged to the protocol design window 530. As a result, the conditional branch node T2 is added to the protocol design window 530. The user can specify the condition of the conditional branch node T2 in the information window 570. This condition can be input as an equality or inequality, for example. An edge E6 indicating the satisfaction of the condition of the conditional branch node T2 and an edge E7 indicating the non-satisfaction of the condition extend from the conditional branch node T2. Each of the edges E6 and E7 is shown by a dotted line because the connection destination is not determined.

Fig. 11 is a diagram showing a case where the conditional branch processing of the conditional branch node T2 of fig. 10 is determined. In the directed graph DG1 shown in fig. 11, the position of the end node Me is moved from the position of the end node Me in fig. 10, and the edge E2 is deleted. By the drag operation of the user from the feature extraction node T1 to the conditional branch node T2, the edge E8 from the feature extraction node T1 to the conditional branch node T2 is added. The edge E8 shows, as a condition of the conditional branch node T2, a condition that specifies a feature quantity extracted by a process corresponding to the feature quantity extraction node T1. The front end of the opposite edge E6 is connected to the end node Me through the dragging operation of the user. The front end of the edge E7 is connected to the processing node M1 through a dragging operation of the user. Since the feature amount of the output data corresponding to the data node D1 can be directly used for the condition of the conditional branch node T2 via the feature amount extraction node T1, the design of the conditional branch processing based on the output data can be made efficient.

The directed graph DG1 includes a loop structure that loops in the order of the processing node M1, the data node D1, the feature extraction node T1, and the conditional branch node T2. When the condition of the conditional branch node T2 is established, the experimental protocol p1 ends. If this condition is not satisfied, the processing of the processing node M1 and the feature amount extraction node T1 is performed in this order, and then the conditional branch processing of the conditional branch node T2 is performed again. While the condition of the conditional branch node T2 is not satisfied, the processes of the processing node M1 and the feature amount extraction node T1 are repeated. That is, the condition of the conditional branch node T2 is an end condition of the repetitive processing including the respective processes of the processing node M1 and the feature amount extraction node T1. In addition, the condition of the conditional branch node can be a continuation condition of the repetitive processing. In this case, the repetitive processing is continued while the condition of the conditional branch node is satisfied.

The conditional branch processing node is included in the selectable nodes as the vertices of the digraph, and thus the structure of the conditional branch processing and the structure of the iterative processing of the experimental protocol can be accurately reflected in the digraph. As a result, it is possible to provide a method of designing an experimental protocol that can cope with higher-level processing. In addition, by designing the experiment protocol in the form of a directed graph, it is possible to accurately perform automatic analysis of the experiment protocol such as tracking of the change process of the sample in the experiment protocol. Examples of the process of changing the sample in the experimental protocol include a cell lineage formed by repeated seeding and subculture. Further, the automatic parsing of the experimental protocol includes machine learning (e.g., principal component analysis or deep learning) of the directed graph.

Fig. 12 is a diagram showing a directed graph DG2 as a design example of the other experimental protocol p 2. As shown in fig. 12, "protocol p2" is selected in the protocol list window 520. The directed graph DG2 includes a start node Ms2, an end node Me2, a processing node M21 corresponding to absorbance measurement, a timer node T22, repetition nodes T23A and T23B, a container node C21, and a data node D21. The start node Ms2 and the repeat node T23A are connected by an edge E21 from the start node Ms2 toward the repeat node T23A. The repetition node T23A and the processing node M21 are connected by an edge E22 from the repetition node T23A to the processing node M21. The container node C21 and the processing node M21 are connected by an edge E23 extending from the container node C21 to the processing node M21. The processing node M21 and the data node D21 are connected by an edge E24 from the processing node M21 to the data node D21.

The processing node M21 and the timer node T22 are connected by an edge E25 from the processing node M21 to the timer node T22. The timer node T22 and the repeat node T23B are connected by an edge E26 from the timer node T22 toward the repeat node T23B. The repetition node T23B and the end node Me2 are connected by an edge E27 from the repetition node T23B toward the end node Me 2. The repetition nodes T23B, T23A are connected by an edge E28 from the repetition node T23B toward T23A. The directed graph DG2 includes a loop structure that loops in the order of the repeating node T23A, the processing node M21, the timer node T22, and the repeating node T23B. In the information window 570, an upper limit value of the number of times of repetition of the repeating process by the repeating nodes T23A, T23B is specified. The condition for ending the repetition process is that the number of repetitions is not less than the upper limit. The continuation condition of the repetition process is a condition that the number of repetitions is less than an upper limit value. By repeating the nodes, the design of the repetition process in the experimental protocol can be made efficient.

Fig. 13 is a diagram showing a directed graph DG3 as a design example of another experimental protocol p 3. As shown in fig. 13, "protocol p3" is selected in the protocol list window 520. The directed graph DG3 includes a start node Ms3, an end node Me3, processing nodes M31, M32, M33, M34, M35, M36, container nodes C31, C32 and data nodes D31, D32. The processing nodes M31 to M36 correspond to "cultured cells", "dispensed liquid", "absorbance measurement", "centrifugation", "dispensed liquid", and "mass analysis", respectively, shown in the automated experiment system window 540.

The start node Ms3 and the processing node M31 are connected by an edge E31 from the start node Ms3 toward the processing node M31. The processing nodes M31 and M32 are connected by an edge E32 from the processing node M31 to the processing node M32. The processing nodes M32 and M33 are connected by an edge E33 from the processing node M32 toward the processing node M33. The processing nodes M33 and M34 are connected by an edge E34 from the processing node M33 toward M34. The processing nodes M34 and M35 are connected by an edge E35 extending from the processing node M34 to the processing node M35. The processing nodes M35 and M36 are connected by an edge E36 extending from the processing node M35 to the processing node M36. The processing node M36 and the end node Me3 are connected by an edge E37 from the processing node M36 toward the end node Me 3.

The container node C31 and the processing node M31 are connected by an edge E41 from the container node C31 to the processing node M31. The container node C31 and the processing node M32 are connected by an edge E42 from the container node C31 toward the processing node M32.

The container node C32 and the processing node M32 are connected by an edge E43 from the container node C32 toward the processing node M32. The container node C32 and the processing node M33 are connected by an edge E44 from the container node C32 toward the processing node M33. The container node C32 and the processing node M34 are connected by an edge E45 from the container node C32 toward the processing node M34. The container node C32 and the processing node M35 are connected by an edge E46 from the container node C32 toward the processing node M35. The container node C32 and the processing node M36 are connected by an edge E47 from the container node C32 toward the processing node M36.

The processing node M33 and the data node D31 are connected by an edge E51 from the processing node M33 toward the data node D31. The processing node M36 and the data node D32 are connected by an edge E52 from the processing node M36 toward the data node D32.

Fig. 14 is a diagram showing an example of information displayed when a GU I operation (for example, double-click) specified by the user is performed on a node included in the directed graph DG3 shown in fig. 13. Fig. 14 shows an example of information displayed in a case where the data node D32 (selected node) in fig. 13 is double-clicked. Fig. 14 (a) and (b) show a liquid chromatogram and a mass spectrum generated from the output data of the mass analysis corresponding to the processing node M36, respectively. In the case of double-clicking a processing node, for example, a description of processing corresponding to the processing node is displayed. In the case of double-clicking the container node, for example, a detailed description of the sample contained in the container is displayed. By displaying information on a node of a directed graph by a predetermined GU I operation, it is possible to efficiently refer to information on components of an experimental protocol designed in the form of a directed graph.

Fig. 15 is a block diagram showing a hardware configuration of the server apparatus 200 of fig. 1. As shown in fig. 15, the server apparatus 200 includes a processor 201, a memory 202 and a hard disk 203 as storage units, a communication interface 204 as a communication unit, and an input/output unit 205. Which are communicatively connected to each other via a bus 210.

The hard disk 203 is a nonvolatile storage device. The hard disk 203 stores, for example, an Operating System (OS) program 51 and an automatic experiment management program 52. In addition to the data shown in fig. 15, the hard disk 203 stores settings and outputs of various application programs, for example. The Memory 202 is a volatile Memory device, such as a DRAM (dynamic Random Access Memory).

The processor 201 includes a CPU (Central l Process i ng Un it: central processing Unit). The processor 201 reads a program stored in the hard disk 203 into the memory 202 and executes the program, thereby realizing each function of the server apparatus 200. For example, the processor 201 executing the automatic experiment management program 52 provides the experiment protocol designing application 500 to the terminal apparatus 400. The processor 201 is connected to a network NW via a communication interface 204.

Fig. 16 is a flowchart illustrating a flow of an automatic experiment based on an experiment protocol performed in the automatic experiment management system 1000 of fig. 1. As shown in fig. 16, the terminal device 400 in S11 designs an experiment protocol in the form of a directed graph, and transmits the experiment protocol to the server device 200. In S12, the server apparatus 200 transmits the experiment protocol to the automatic experiment system selected by the user of the terminal apparatus 400. In S13, the control device of the automatic experiment system automatically executes the experiment protocol received from the server device 200. In S14, the control device transmits output data of the process included in the experiment protocol to the server device 200.

In the embodiment, a case where an experiment protocol designed in a terminal device is transmitted to an automatic experiment system via a server device is described. The experimental protocol may also be sent directly from the terminal device to the automated experimental system.

Fig. 17 is a block diagram showing the configuration of an automatic experiment management system 1100 according to modification 1 of the embodiment. The automatic experiment management system 1100 is configured by removing the server device 200 and the database 300 from the automatic experiment management system 1000 of fig. 1 and replacing the terminal device 400 with 400A. The same applies to the above-described embodiments, and therefore, description thereof will not be repeated. The experimental protocol design application 500A is displayed on the display 431 of the terminal apparatus 400A.

Fig. 18 is a block diagram showing a hardware configuration of the terminal device 400A of fig. 17. The terminal 400A is configured by adding an automatic experiment management program 52A to the hard disk 423 in fig. 2. The same applies to the above-described embodiments, and therefore, description thereof will not be repeated. Automated experiment management program 52A is executed by processor 421 to thereby enable automated execution of experiment protocol design application 500A and experiment protocols based on an automated experiment system.

The design of the experimental protocol may be performed in the control device of the automated experimental system. Fig. 19 is a block diagram showing the configuration of an automatic experiment system 1B according to modification 2 of the embodiment. The automatic experiment system 1B has a configuration in which the control device 110 is replaced with 110B in the automatic experiment system 1 of fig. 1. The same applies to the above-described embodiments, and therefore, description thereof will not be repeated.

As shown in fig. 19, the control device 110B includes an input/output unit 130 and a computer 140 (processing unit). The input/output unit 130 includes a display 131 (display unit), a keyboard 132 (input unit), and a mouse 133 (input unit). The display 131, keyboard 132 and mouse 133 are connected to the computer 140. Display 131 displays the GU I of experimental protocol design application 500B. The keyboard 132 and mouse 133 receive GU I operations by the user on the experimental protocol design application 500B. That is, the user performs a desired GU I operation on the experiment protocol designing application 500B by the operation of the keyboard 132 or the operation of the mouse 133 while referring to the display on the display 131.

Fig. 20 is a block diagram showing a hardware configuration of control device 110B in fig. 19. As shown in fig. 20, the computer 140 includes a processor 141, a memory 142 and a hard disk 143 as storage units, and a communication interface 144. Which are communicatively connected to each other via a bus 145.

The hard disk 143 is a nonvolatile storage device. The hard disk 143 stores, for example, a program 61 of an operating System (OS: operating i ng System) and an automatic experiment management program 52B. In addition to the data shown in fig. 20, settings and outputs of various application programs are stored in the hard disk 143, for example. The Memory 142 is a volatile Memory device, such as a DRAM (dynamic Random Access Memory).

The processor 141 includes a CPU (Central l Process i ng Un it: central processing Unit). The processor 141 reads a program stored in the hard disk 143 into the memory 142 and executes the program. The automated experiment management program 52B is executed by the processor 141 to thereby enable automated execution of the experiment protocol design application 500B and the experiment protocols by the plurality of experiment devices 120. Processor 141 is connected to the network via communication interface 144.

As described above, according to the method and system of embodiment and modification 1 and the apparatus of modification 2 of embodiment, it is possible to provide a design method of an experimental protocol that can cope with higher-level processing.

[ solution ]

Those skilled in the art will appreciate that the above-described exemplary embodiments are specific examples of the following arrangements.

(item 1) the method of the first aspect comprises: the method comprises the steps of receiving GU I operation of a user on a specific application program, designing an experiment protocol which specifies the processing sequence of at least one experiment device in the form of a directed graph according to the received GU I operation, and controlling the at least one experiment device to automatically execute the experiment protocol. The selectable plurality of nodes as vertices of the directed graph include processing nodes corresponding to respective processes of at least one experimental apparatus and conditional branch nodes corresponding to conditional branch processes.

According to the method described in item 1, it is possible to design an experimental protocol in the form of a directed graph including conditional branch nodes, and thus it is possible to provide a design method of an experimental protocol that can cope with higher-level processing.

(item 2) in the method of item 1, the plurality of nodes further include a container node, a data node, and a feature amount extraction node. A container node corresponding to a container holding a sample processed by at least one experimental device. And a data node corresponding to output data of the processing of each sample in the at least one experimental apparatus. The feature extraction node corresponds to a process of extracting a feature from output data. The condition of the conditional branch node includes a condition related to the feature quantity.

According to the method described in item 2, the feature amount of the output data corresponding to the data node can be directly used for the condition of the conditional branch node via the feature amount extraction node, whereby the design of the conditional branch processing based on the output data can be made efficient.

(item 3) in the method according to item 2, the step of designing the experimental protocol in the form of a directed graph includes a step of automatically adding the container node and the data node in accordance with the addition of the processing node. Here, the container node and the processing node are connected by the 1 st edge from the container node toward the processing node. The processing node and the data node are connected by a 2 nd edge from the processing node toward the data node.

According to the method described in item 3, the container node and the data node connected to the processing node are automatically added as the processing node is added, thereby making it possible to efficiently design the experimental protocol.

(item 4) the method according to any one of items 1 to 3, wherein the information on the selected node is displayed in accordance with a predetermined GU I operation on the selected node included in the plurality of nodes.

According to the method of item 4, the information on the selected node is displayed by the predetermined GU I operation on the selected node, whereby the information on the constituent elements of the experimental protocol designed in the form of the directed graph can be effectively referred to.

(item 5) the method according to any one of items 1 to 4, wherein the plurality of nodes further include a repeat node corresponding to a repeat process.

The method according to item 5, wherein the design of the repetitive process in the experimental protocol can be made efficient by repeating the nodes.

The system according to (item 6) is provided with at least one experimental apparatus, a terminal apparatus, and a control apparatus. The terminal device has an input unit and a processing unit. The input receives a GUI operation of a user on a particular application. The processing section designs an experiment protocol specifying a processing order of at least one experiment apparatus in the form of a directed graph based on the received GU I operation. The control device controls at least one experimental device to execute an experimental protocol. The terminal device includes, as vertices of the digraph, a plurality of selectable nodes including a processing node corresponding to each process of at least one experimental device and a conditional branch node corresponding to a conditional branch process.

According to the system described in item 6, the experimental protocol can be designed in the form of a directed graph including conditional branch nodes, and thus the design method of the experimental protocol that can cope with higher-level processing can be provided.

(7 th item) the system according to claim 6, further comprising a server device for providing the terminal device with the specific application. The server device transmits an experimental protocol designed in the terminal device to the control device.

According to the system described in item 7, the server device exists between the terminal device that designs the experimental protocol and the control device that controls at least one experimental device to execute the experimental protocol, whereby the plurality of terminal devices and the plurality of control devices can be collectively managed by the server device.

The apparatus of one of (items 8) controls at least one experimental apparatus to execute an experimental protocol that specifies a processing sequence of the at least one experimental apparatus. The device includes a display unit, an input unit, and a processing unit. The display unit displays a specific application program. The input unit receives a GU I operation of a user for a specific application. The processing part designs an experimental protocol in a directed graph mode according to GU I operation. The selectable plurality of nodes as vertices of the directed graph include processing nodes corresponding to respective processes of at least one experimental apparatus and conditional branch nodes corresponding to conditional branch processes.

The apparatus according to item 8, wherein the experimental protocol can be designed in the form of a directed graph including conditional branch nodes, thereby providing a method for designing an experimental protocol that can cope with higher-level processing.

In addition, with respect to the above-described embodiments and modifications, it is intended to include combinations not mentioned in the specification from the beginning of the application, and the configurations described in the embodiments are appropriately combined within a range not causing inconvenience or contradiction.

The presently disclosed embodiments are to be considered in all respects as illustrative and not restrictive. The scope of the present invention is defined by the claims, not by the description above, and is intended to include all modifications within the meaning and scope equivalent to the claims.

Description of the reference numerals

1. 1B automatic experiment system

110. 110B control device

120 experimental facility

121 robot arm

122 incubator

123 liquid processor

124 micro flat reader

125 centrifugal separator

130. 205, 430 input/output unit

131. 431 display

132. 432 keyboard

133 mouse

140 computer

141. 201, 421 processor

142. 202, 422 memory

143. 203, 423 hard disk

144. 204, 424 communication interface

145. 210, 440 bus

200 server device

300 database

400. 400A terminal device

433 touch pad

500. 500A, 500B experiment protocol design application program

510 queue list window

520 protocol list window

530 protocol design Window

531 Container area

532 treatment area

533 data area

540 automatic experiment system window

550 sample container window

560 tool window

570 information window

600 Web browser

1000. 1100 automatic experiment management system

C1, C21, C31, C32 container node

Cr selection cursor

D1, D21, D31, D32 data node

DG 1-DG 3 directed graph

T2 conditional branch node

M1, M21, M31-M36 processing nodes

T1 characteristic quantity extraction node

T23A, T23B repeat node

Me, me2 and Me3 end node

Ms, ms2 and Ms3 start node

NW network

P l t1, P l t2 board

T22 timer node

p1 to p3 experimental protocols.

Claims

1. A method, comprising:

a step of receiving a User operation on a GUI (Graphical User Interface) of a specific application program;

a step of designing an experiment protocol which prescribes a processing sequence of at least one experiment device in the form of a directed graph according to the received GUI operation;

a step of controlling the at least one experimental device to automatically perform the experimental protocol,

the selectable plurality of nodes as vertices of the directed graph include processing nodes corresponding to the respective processes of the at least one experimental apparatus and conditional branch nodes corresponding to conditional branch processes.

2. The method of claim 1,

the plurality of nodes further comprises:

a container node corresponding to a container containing a sample processed by the at least one experimental device;

a data node corresponding to output data of a process for each of the samples of the at least one experimental device;

a feature amount extraction node corresponding to a process of extracting a feature amount from the output data,

the condition of the conditional branch node includes a condition related to the feature quantity.

3. The method of claim 2,

the step of designing the experimental protocol in the form of a directed graph includes the step of automatically adding the container node and the data node as the processing node is added, and here,

the container node and the processing node are connected by a 1 st edge from the container node towards the processing node,

the processing node and the data node are connected by a 2 nd edge from the processing node toward the data node.

4. The method of claim 1, wherein information related to a selected node among the plurality of nodes is displayed according to a prescribed GUI operation for the selected node.

5. The method of claim 1, wherein the plurality of nodes further comprises a duplicate node corresponding to a duplicate process.

6. A system, characterized in that,

at least one experimental device;

a terminal device having an input unit for receiving a GUI operation of a user for a specific application program, and a processing unit for designing an experiment protocol defining a processing procedure of the at least one experiment device in the form of a directed graph based on the received GUI operation;

a control device controlling the at least one experiment device to execute the experiment protocol,

the terminal device includes, as the vertices of the directed graph, a plurality of selectable nodes including a processing node corresponding to each process of the at least one experimental device and a conditional branch node corresponding to a conditional branch process.

7. The system of claim 6,

further comprises a server device for providing the specific application program to the terminal device,

the server apparatus transmits the experimental protocol designed in the terminal apparatus to the control apparatus.

8. An apparatus for controlling at least one experimental apparatus to execute an experimental protocol defining a processing procedure of the at least one experimental apparatus, comprising:

a display unit that displays a specific application;

an input unit that receives a GUI operation of the specific application program by a user;

a processing section that designs the experimental protocol in a directed graph form according to the received GUI operation,

the selectable nodes as vertices of the directed graph include processing nodes corresponding to respective processes of the at least one experimental apparatus and conditional branch nodes corresponding to conditional branch processes.